4. Dragon1 EA Method: Open Standard

4.1 Dragon1 is an open Standard

Dragon1 is an open Standard for working with Enterprise Architecture. 'Open' means that information about the Dragon1 open EA Method is freely available and/or via textbooks at nominal costs. There are no restrictions whatsoever for using Dragon1 properly. However, there are some limitations on what you may or can do with Dragon1.

enterprise architecture standard

Dragon1 is an open standard for working with Enterprise Architecture.

4.2 Why an Open Standard for Enterprise Architecture?

The four main reasons to create an open standard for Enterprise Architecture is that 1) many practitioners can collaborate in creating quality architecture products, with the assurance that the method or framework they are using can or never will be made not open or restricted to use. And 2) to ensure a transparent procedure is used to improve the method or framework. And 3) to make usage or adoption of the method or framework possible at a low entry level. And 4) ensure that documentation and materials are available at nominal costs.

4.3 What is a Technical Standard?

A technical standard is an established norm or requirement regarding technical systems. It is usually a formal document that establishes uniform engineering or technical criteria, methods, processes, and practices ( source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technical_standard).

Dragon1 as a method is written down in several textbooks. These books are the official method specification. With that, a formal document contains the technical standard: 'Dragon1 open EA Method'. If one refers to the Dragon1 open EA Method, one refers to what is in that specification document.

4.4 Dragon1 is Copyright Protected

Dragon1 is a technical standard, and the word and the graphical image 'Dragon1' are deposited as international trademarks. With that, the Dragon1 Foundation protects practitioners of the method from abuse and misusage and keeps the method open.

4.5 How does the Dragon1 Foundation define Open Standard?

The Dragon1 Foundation defines Open Standard as follows:

An open standard is a publicly available standard with various rights to use associated with it. It may also have various properties, such as how it was designed (e.g., open process).

There are five key Open Standard Principles, as outlined below, that the Dragon1 Foundation uses:

1. Cooperation

Respectful cooperation between standards organizations, whereby each respects the others' autonomy, integrity, processes, and intellectual property rules.

2. Adherence to Principles

Adherence to the five fundamental principles of standards development:

  • Due process. Decisions are made with equity and fairness among participants. No one party dominates or guides standards development. Standards processes are transparent, and opportunities exist to appeal decisions. Processes for periodic standards review and updating are well-defined.
  • Broad consensus. Processes allow for all views to be considered and addressed so that agreement can be found across various interests.
  • Transparency. Standards organizations provide advance public notice of proposed standards development activities, the scope of work to be undertaken, and conditions for participation. Easily accessible records of decisions and the materials used in reaching those decisions are provided. Public comment periods are provided before final standards approval and adoption.
  • Balance. Any particular person, company, or interest group does not exclusively dominate standards activities.
  • Openness. Standards processes are open to all interested and informed parties.

3. Collective Empowerment

Commitment by affirming standards organizations and their participants to collective empowerment by striving for standards that:
are chosen and defined based on technical merit, as judged by the contributed expertise of each participant;
provide global interoperability, scalability, stability, and resiliency; enable global competition;
serve as building blocks for further innovation and contribute to creating global communities, benefiting humanity.

4. Availability

Standards specifications are accessible for implementation and deployment. Affirming standards organizations have defined procedures to develop specifications that can be implemented under fair terms. Given market diversity, fair terms may vary from royalty-free to fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory terms (FRAND).

5. Voluntary

Adoption Standards are voluntarily adopted, and the market determines success.

These principles have led to many successful open standards we use today. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_standard

4.6 Dragon1 Foundation

Dragon1 Foundation is a nonprofit standards organization focused on further developing and innovating the Dragon1 open EA Method. The Dragon1 Foundation is the caretaker of the method and the only organization with the legal right to do so.

The Dragon1 Foundation makes sure that Dragon1 stays open and respects the five principles above.

4.7 Open Review Process

Anyone or any organization can use the transparent change procedures to have change requests, suggestions, or proposals to improve the Dragon1 open EA Method processed and reviewed. It may be approved.

Next to that, the Dragon1 Foundation works with an annual update cycle to ensure that every part of the method stays usable.

4.8 Dragon1 Textbooks

The method specification is available via paperback and hardcover textbooks. Also, online eBooks are available. The textbooks are available at nominal costs, and the books are copyright protected.

4.9 About adopting and changing Dragon1

You may adopt unedited parts of the method, not the whole one, into your method. But still, the Dragon1 parts stay open and need to be referred to as Dragon1 parts, using the reference 'Dragon1 Open EA Method', www.dragon1.com / www.dragon1.org.

You may never change, reduce, or extend a part of Dragon1 by yourself. If you want to do that, use the Open Review Process. If we allow this, it could cause confusion among practitioners or parts of the method to become unopened.

4.10 About Certification and Accreditation

The Dragon1 Foundation is the only organization that may certify practitioners or accrediting organizations for Dragon1 and enter them in a Dragon1 register and provide that register.

In this way, the Dragon1 Foundation controls the quality of consultancy and training services and services provided in the market using Dragon1 as part of it.

4.11 Using Dragon1 Properly

Using Dragon1 properly comes down to four things:

1. Adopting Dragon1 as a whole as an internal method for working with Enterprise Architecture

Every organization has its way of working for system development, project management, and sometimes also enterprise architecture.

Dragon1 as an open EA method is meant to be adopted as a whole or used to enrich the way an organization works with enterprise architecture.

The Dragon1 Foundation has developed an approach to adopt, introduce, and implement Dragon1 as an open EA method.

2. Creating architecture products using Dragon1 as internal EA method

The Dragon1 open EA Method states that enterprise architecture is a total concept for an enterprise structure and that an architect is the designer of that total concept and the supervisor of the realization of that total concept.

This results in an architect always having to create architecture design products like blueprints, landscapes, and sketch drawings.

Dragon1 lays out in detail how to create architecture design products that can be used to support decision-making.

3. Providing training in Dragon1

The Dragon1 Architecture Foundation has defined a Dragon1 Education Program consisting of several training courses.

Only if you are a Dragon1 Certified Trainer or Dragon1 Accredited Training organization you may commercially provide the official Dragon1 training courses. The Dragon1 Foundation publishes a register of certified persons and accredited organizations.

If you are not certified you may only provide internal training in Dragon1 in your organization, at a public school, or a public university. The training may not be advertised with Dragon1 in its name or the advertisement.

You may make parts of the Dragon1 method part of your training, but you may not create a training mostly or only addresses Dragon1.

If you have developed a training, you can have it reviewed by the Dragon1 Foundation for conformance and improvement.

In this way, the Dragon1 Foundation can control the quality of the Dragon1 training and training courses worldwide.

4. Providing consultancy in Dragon1

The Dragon1 Architecture Foundation has defined a Dragon1 Consultancy Program consisting of several consultancy practices.

Only if you are a Dragon1 Certified Architect or Dragon1 Accredited Consulting organization you may commercially provide the official Dragon1 consultancy practices. The Dragon1 Foundation publishes a register of certified persons and accredited organizations.

If you are not certified, you may only provide internal consultancy in Dragon1 in your organization, and the consultancy may not be advertised with Dragon1 in its name or the advertisement.

You may make parts of the Dragon1 method part of your consultancy practices, but you may not create a consultancy practice that mostly or only addresses Dragon1.

If you have developed a consultancy practice yourself, you can have it reviewed by the Dragon1 Foundation for conformance and improvement.

In this way, the Dragon1 Foundation can control the quality of Dragon1 consultancy and practices worldwide.

Whenever you are busy with one of these four activities, you use Dragon1 properly.

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